Arcobaleno: Lives of Lies
by BlackCoat13
Summary: What is really known? Who are they? Arcobanleno, as known by each other, and the Vongolia and Varia, and the common Mafiaoso.
1. Chapter 1

Arcobaleno: Lives of Lies

I do not own Katekyō Hitman Reborn.

Much is speculated about the seven Arcobaleno. There are seven. Or depending on how well informed the person you're talking to, there are eight, or seven and a half of them. Three are rumored to have allied themselves with the Vongola family. One is unable to die. Another is the master of all things perceived. One is the smartest man on the planet. Another is the ultimate assassin. One is the strongest martial artist ever seen. Such are the rumors about the Arcobaleno.

But for all the rumors and speculation, you'll be hard pressed to ever come up with facts regarding these extraordinary individuals. Certain things are known. They are tiny babies that carry colored pacifiers. They do not age, and it is night impossible to truly kill one. If your name is Byakuran, take this into account. You managed to kill them? Oh well, they get better.

The Arcobaleno held the three sets of rings, and were the ones that gave them to their current owners. Those families will forever stand, no matter the trails. They are all insanely strong and adaptable. They are resistant to sickness, poisons, and extreme conditions. This is all that is known to those who have never met one. Those that have met an Arcobaleno and lived to tell the tale will tell you they have the most ludicrously extreme personalities you have ever met.

This is where the rumors start up. There are eight, and they each have different colors.

The sun one is perhaps the most well known, a tiny black haired baby with a penchant for suits. His name is Reborn. He is debatably the leader of the Arco's, but don't try to tell him or any of the others that. He is known to horde special bullets that do weird and insane things, which his partner often makes for him. Reborn has a shape shifting chameleon that goes by the name of Leon. Reborn's animal partner can turn into pretty much anything reborn could want, so long as it's not too big. The duo taught the Bucking Bronto, and several other famous names. The most popular rumor about Reborn is that he is teaching Vongola the 10nth.

The second Arcobaleno is a little more low profile that than Reborn, the most famous of them all. His name is Skull. That's it. Nobody knows his real name, last name, or even if it's his real name. He is known for his famous life risking stunts though. He's broken _every_ single bone in his body _at least_ twice. He has purple hair, makeup, and looks a bit like a girl. He is clad in purple leather and his Motorcycle helmet is with him at all times. He has some facial piercings. His pet is a giant octopus that Skull taught to fight for him, using finger signals. He's currently a member of the Calcassa Family. It is rumored by one or two close mouthed soldier that he can do something amazing about his body and size, but that's all anyone will say. He's still an Arcobaleno, weakest of them or not.

The third is famous, just not in where you live. He's a big hit in china. His name is Fon, and he has mastered every martial art style under the sun. He's been the champion of every martial arts tournament in china for three years running. You know that a martial arts tournament is a big deal by if he's ever bothered to show up and win first place at that tournament. He holds the storm pacifier, and he's calm and likeable. He has perhaps the least strange personality, until you tick him off. His favored style is Lotus Kempo.

The fourth Arcobaleno is Verde. He is, without a doubt the smartest man currently alive on the planet. He wears a lab coat, has green hair, and is the holder of the electric Pacifier. He made the first box weapon, then the next, and the next. He had made over a thousand different box weapons, before anyone even figured out how to use one. He is the creater of approximately half the box weapons on the planet. He makes technology so advanced only he knows how to use it, or what it does. He himself says the top scientists will figure it out in thirty years if he decides to simplify it. His pet is an alligator. He is also extremely paranoid, building everything he makes with a failsafe and making everything not work if he's in danger. He'd do anything for his experiments. It's rumored he helped with some of the horrendous experiments done to the children and other captives of the Estraneos. No proof was found, which just casts Verde as more suspicious. Even the other Arcobaleno are cautious and wary of him. In Reborn's own words "He's not one of us." And "You can never tell what he is thinking."

The next most famous Arcobaleno is the holder of the Rain Pacifier, Colennello. He's a brash and brave military man, toting around an anti-tank rifle and a green army uniform. He is the teacher of thousands of Mafioso's and military cadets. He is proficient with every weapon that's ever graced his line of sight. He is a former member of COMSUBIN and known as the invincible soldier. He has blond hair like the sun and blue eyes that stare into your soul. At least the other Arcobaleno are subtle about it. His partner is a large sea hawk which is strong enough to carry him, enabling Colennello to fly.

The next well known Arcobaleno is the epitome of mysteriousness. His name is Mammon, or Viper if you had ever met him before his days in Varia. He always wears ovr-sized black coats to hide himself. Very little is known about Mammon. There is a long standing bet between Arcobaleno if he's even really a he. It is said his weapon is illusions so powerful that as soon as you enter a mile within him you are snared, and he can do whatever he want to you if you catch his attention. He is rumored to have trained all the members of Varia at least a little bit, and he is the peace keeper among them. The rumors say he is at least a little bit prideful, but has a great need or want for money. His animal is a frog on his head. It's rumored the frog does something else, but you'd have to be in Varia or someone who fought him to know.

The next Arcobaleno is named Lal Mirch. She's only known by those who have worked alongside her. She is currently in CEDEF, working alongside the Vongolia external adviser. Nobody knows what color her pacifier is, and she has no known animal, breaking the mold set by the other Arcobaleno. She has blue hair and favors a red coat, with a blue lightning bolt on her face, or a red lightning bolt, depending on who you ask. If she avoids using her corrupt and colorless pacifier she eventually loses the curse, allowing her to age. Why she would do this is unknown by that envy such god like body. For her, the reason is simple. She never wanted this curse.

And the last Arcobaleno, the least known by the public. Little is known about her to non- Arcobaleno's or the Millifore family. The public know that she must exist even though they know jack shit about her. If the Arcobaleno say there are seven, one for each of the colors of the rainbow, then there MUST be a sky one, right?

Secretly her name is Luce, and somehow or another she must've succeeded where Viper failed. She must've broken the curse, and in the process given up her Arcobaleno body and status. Her animal companion is a squirrel. It is said by Reborn she has a mysterious power of insight, so perhaps she has some form of hyper intuition?

This is all that is known by the public. Only the seven official Arcobaleno know the full story, and they aren't telling.

Even the Vongolia the 10nths family, which should consider themselves something of Arcobaleno experts, don't know what happened that night to eight of the most powerful people ever known.

What the Arcobaleno know about each other is limited too. That night, Viper didn't even give his name. Reborn and Verde were the most well known. Lal mirch and Colennello knew each other. The others were unknown, yet still selected by the masked man.

Arcobaleno lives lives of silence, secrets, and lies. The most powerful people, over night turned into the Cursed infants. Brought to the peak of their power to not even half their original strength. A mortal human might think that their Arcobaleno powers and bodies were something to cherish. They just want their lives back.


	2. Chapter 2

Arcobaleno: Lives of Lies

I do not own Katekyō Hitman Reborn.

Chapter: Reborn

Reborn sat on a tall rock, away from the other Arcobaleno. He needed to be alone, his way of everything. Alone with his solitude. He swore he'd never need anyone again. So, alone on a rock he sat, fifty feet above the seven other Arcobaleno below him.

He was a child. An infant, really. He hated it. He recognized what it meant. Helplessness. He swore to himself he'd never be helpless or need anyone ever again. His clothes, once his signature, had shrunken down onto his child body. He still posses his raw strength, but now using it would damage his child body. His gun could never again be fatal, after it being broken so horribly in the transformation. Leon had turned into a ridiculous cartoonish chameleon, but now instead of changing colors he changed shape. The scientist down there, Verde, had argued with him for an hour to let him dissect Leon. No way in hell. Reborn had finished the argument by putting his (broken) gun to the man's head. Verde had to know it was broken, but the message was sent. Touch my reptile and die. Kindly go play with your own.

The transformation process had been UNBELIEVABLY painful, even to Reborn, who had survived insanely cruel torture. Nothing would ever compare, he was sure. Yet the pain didn't mess with their heads, or anything it should have done. It just hurt like hell. The only one affected was the Mist man, and Verde and Lune had seen to him. Verde declared that he had become allergic to pain. Fon, himself, and Colonnello had found that very funny.

After the initial shrinkage it had taken Reborn a full second and a half to mull through his shock before turning his gun on the masked man. It was then, as he held it that he discovered it was broken. Leon had gotten there somehow. He hadn't brought him, but here he was. The masked man laughed when Reborn asked about it. After he had vanished and Verde had snapped back to being a mad scientist Verde had declared their pets had been teleported. Lal Mirch didn't have a pet. Neither did anyone but Verde and Reborn. They now had pets.

Verde had studied Lal Mirch for a good three minutes, ages to the Arcobaleno's heightened reflexes and senses. Colonnello had fumed, but done nothing. Verde announced that she still held the curse, but it was much weaker. No animal or colored pacifier for her.. Instead she had her incomplete clear one with black swirls. It had been blue for only a minute or so, Colennello taking all the power she was supposed to get. Reborn had observed them. Before those two he had thought true love to be laughable, now he was sure he had seen it.

Reborn had closely examined his fellow seven. Reborn himself had been through things the world should never hear about. This was the worst of them so far. He watched them, looking for that tell tale sign of madness. Strangely enough, he only saw it in Verde, but that had been there before.

Perhaps the new forms were meant to last?

Reborn isolated himself from the group. They all did too, coming to terms with their new curse. Reborn reflected on his past now.

Reborn was too outrageous to really be his name. He had thrown away his real name several years ago, to protect those that needed to hide, his past, and the one remaining member of his family. He had gone through the worst times in Mafia history, made it out, and become a legend. He was the ultimate assassin, as the rumors called him. He could kill ten men with six bullets. He killed the un-killable man. Things like that. He let the rumors fly, but only because they'd be good for business rep. He raked in thousands a day.

Then business had a short dry spell, and he received one of the vaguer missions of his career. The last mission as Hitman. The employer had said he didn't need any weapons for this job. He brought his pistol, enough fire power in one hand for him to kill anyone he met. He went up the mountain on the behalf of the strange man. Seven strange individuals came too. And the eighth… lagged behind.

The hike up the mountain was long and uninteresting. There was little talking. They asked no names. None were given anyways. If one of them knew something Reborn did not, they did not show it in any way. Yet Reborn recognized several.

The man in the motor cycle helmet and purple leather, was known as Skull. He was a stunt devil. The rumors said he could not die. Reborn had killed several men who could not die. Skull was no threat.

The woman shaman was peace loving, Reborn could see it in her every movement. She reminded him of his own sister. He quashed such thoughts immediately. No threat.

Lal mirch. A strong and fierce fighter, but always loyal. Moderate threat, but would probably not turn on them. Probably.

Verde, the mad scientist. Threat level, high. He could build anything, as the rumors went. Reborn was confident that he was the quicker shot, but even he had limits.

The cloaked stranger. It was a wonder Reborn had not shot him already. The cloaked man was busy weaving illusions, most of them to hide from scrying eyes. Reborn did not want to fight an illusionist such as this man. He might lose…

The martial artist, Fon. Threat level? Undetermined. He was sure to be fast, and be able to take a hit or two, but he was still a close ranged fighter. Reborn fought on all ranges.

The follower, as Reborn had noticed him ever since the start. Threat level high. Engage if target makes the slightest indication of a threat.

In Reborn's mind the only reason someone would follow them was that they were an assassin, after him, or one of the other six. They were all famous, dangerous, or important. He pulled his gun on the assassin at the last minute, in a spot that benefited the seven accordingly. But Lal recognized the man, so he let it slide. He never took his eye off the man, now identified as Colonnello though.

Now, as Reborn reflected upon his rock, he understood the depths of which Colonnello would go for Lal Mirch. He allowed a brief smile to cross his baby face. Perhaps he could get along with this Colonnello.

Reborn took a glance at his fellow Arcobaleno, as the masked man had called them. Cursed infants. Viper, as he had been named by the masked man, was sitting in his cloak trying fruitlessly to change back with his powerful mist flames. Skull was panicking slightly, pacing back and forth. Fon meditated, but all could see he was unnerved. Lal broke into sobs, but Colonnello was there to comfort her. Luce stood, swaying slightly, as tears poured down her cheeks. Verde drew plans and wrote on a clip board he had on him in his coat at the time of the change. Their animals were all besides them. As they calmed they looked observed one another. It was Luce that spoke first. "We all have pacifiers of different flames." She said, dreamily, like she was just waking up. Reborn had noticed these. He had the Sun one. Verde had lightening. Skull had Cloud. Colonnello had Rain. Fon had Storm. Viper had Mist. Lal's pacifier was filled with black ink clouds. Luce had sky. The holder of the sky leads.

As one, they all turned towards the holder of the sky. Maybe it was because they were babies, and were quickly attaching to people like newborns, but they felt they could instinctually trust the sky one. The eight of the cursed infants chose in that instant, to always be family. And they didn't even know it.

"I intent to break this curse. I encourage you to do the same." Viper told them, the first thing he had said in the time they had known him. "I have examined our bodies with the technology I had on me. These forms cannot be broken. We are immortal, and sickness resistant. Senses are heightened. According to our readings, we cannot travel far from our pacifiers. They are like batteries, powering us. Try to not to even take them off, in fact."

It was these words that woke Reborn from his daze and led him to the rock he was on. Immortal? As a baby? He was….. he was ruined. He couldn't be a Hitman as a baby! If he ever met the masked man again…

Years passed. They didn't bother contacting each other. He had brushes with some of them. Lal Mirch and Colonnello the most. Once or twice, when things were just plain grim in the mafia world, he and the other Arcobaleno fled to their 'mother.' Luce. The family she was with was a stable one. In other times of strife, one or two Arcobaleno would flee to Verde. He let them stay, provided he could try one or two experiments with them, or check something, or whatever his crazy mind wanted. It was almost funny really, you would expect these experiments to be heinous, considering who Verde was, but they were mostly little things, like eating different foods, or being exposed to different things. Verde was looking for… anything really. A chance to break the curse, a weakness in the Arcobaleno's make up. Anything and everything. They all secretly enjoyed each other's company to some degree.

Eventually they split again. None of the Arcobaleno had seen Viper since the event. They assumed him dead, to some horrible event. He had to have been that defensive with his presence for a reason right?

One day Reborn received another mail from the masked man. At a predestined location he would find a case full of rings. Take them to the up and coming Vongolia family. So he did it. What was left? He was irreparably broken. He had been living off his saving for years, trying to do missions when he found them. Anything really. But he was fast approaching poverty. Life was not looking up for Reborn, until he met Vongolia.

On that day, as he handed over the rings to those seven odd men, something in him broke. Those seven men, so much like the Arcobaleno. He missed his family. He sniffed at tiny bit, the start to crying. Reborn had never let anybody see his tears, even in his first childhood. He did not cry, even at the worst of times. But that family…

Primo had hyper intuition. He instinctively knew, the moment he looked at Reborn, that he was seeing a broken man, who had done everything, endured horrible things, and been there since times before he was born. What did it matter he was a baby? He was tasked with the newly christened Vongola rings, he must have some power. Primo looked at Reborn and he saw him as he used to be.

An invitation was given. Primo held out his hand. Reborn, the most powerful mafia man in the world, looked at Primo and saw a way out. He took it. And from that moment on, he was the most loyal member the Vongola family ever known.

Family.


	3. Chapter 3

Arcobaleno: Lives of Lies

I do not own Katekyō Hitman Reborn.

Chapter: Fong

Fong. It meant wind. It also was his name. Fong was swift, impossible to catch, and relentless in his strikes. He was the perfect martial artist, with no one ever close to his peer. He beat every tournament he entered. He had fought hard for his strength and earned every bit of it. His sense of justice and righteousness was his code of honor. He was Fong, champion of China, and the man who could beat anyone.

He didn't have much of a life. It was always training, fighting, and traveling. That was his entire existence. But he was dedicated.

The letter came during a dry spell of tournaments, when he had nothing to do but train in his many styles and his favorite style, Lotus Kempo. Curious, and thinking it might be good training, Fong followed the instructions in the letter. He traveled to the base of that fateful mountain, and met with six other important and powerful figures.

The only one he knew of there was Skull, the famous undying man. Fong held little respect for someone who would risk his life so callously, but he recognized the bravery and willpower. Fong reserved judgement.

Fong did not recognize the others, but he knew by looking at them that the man who was lean and mean looking, and reminded him of lightning bolt with the Fedora, was someone not to be trifled with.

Fong looked at the Shaman woman, and saw a vessel of life, and undying kindness. He revered the ones who walked the way of life. Mothers.

Fong looked at the cloaked schemer and decided he'd better not aggravate the man with the form of mist who hid in every shadow.

Fong observed Lal Mirch, the trained soldier. Better not to be anything but polite to that no-nonsense woman. He was surprised when she eventually told him that much of the world held him in high regard. He knew her from when she had asked to train under him for a short spell. He had showed her and the many people who had come with her, a group known as CEDEF who wanted to learn a few training styles. He had obliged them, and they thanked him with a large sum of cash, which he had donated.

Fong carefully watched the scientist. He seemed to never stop thinking, and was not quite like the others.

Fong ended up being very reserved and polite with them. He was that way with everybody though, so it was okay.

Fong noticed halfway up the mountain that they were being followed. Perhaps the followers letter had come late? Maybe he wasn't very in shape? Oh well, the others made no move to slow down, and he didn't want to lose in a competition of any kind.

When Reborn pulled a gun on the man who trailed behind, Fong instantly was ready to intercept and stop the paranoid Hitman. The Hitman saw his slight movement, Fong knew. It was the question of who was faster between them. Fong meant Wind. Fong was sure he could stop Hitman if he needed to.

But it was not to be. The man, who revealed himself to be Colonnello, was here to place in for Lal Mirch. Fong did not understand why he would do this, until he saw the way they looked at each other. It was clear as day then, so he let them be. If the letter did not say anything against tag along's, and it wouldn't interfere with the training, so why should he care?

Colonnello acted as the ice breaker to the group. Something Fong was thankful for. Fong wanted to get to know these strange people. They seemed like fun characters. But Fong, being Fong, was too polite and shy to push past the grim mood of silence and anti social attitudes rolling off the Hitman and Cloaked schemer.

For all his power Fong was alone and too considerate to try to force himself on others, as Fong saw it. He had some confidence issues. Not in his strength, no, but in his social abilities. He was limited to only politeness, out of fear of rejection. Nobody had ever wanted to stop to get to know him, and he was always to indulged in his training to try to make friends.

The more people ignored him, the more he trained. It was a vicious cycle that would drive him into the ground unless he was stopped.

So when Colonnello came and got all but the schemer and the Hitman to start talking a little, Fong was there to be polite and kind. The two got along well, and soon he knew four of the eight people present.

The mountain had been a hard trek, full of natural dangers and extreme conditions. The very mountain stretched into the sky, to the point where oxygen started to become scarce. Fong found it to be an excellent training regime. He fell into his training again in their frequent breaks. He didn't see any problem with it, but Colonnello did. And so Colonnello addressed him.

"Stop, Hey!" Colonnello interrupted him. Fong looked up from his stance and stretch. "Oh? Why?" He asked, genuinely confused. "Your body can't take much more, Hey!" Colonnello told him. Fong was silent for a while. He could not work out why Colonnello had said that, or why he said that. Colonnello, seeing his confusion explained. "The lack of oxygen and those intense training pieces will destroy your body, Hey! You'll rip yourself up, and then where will you be, Hey!"

Fong was insulted for a good eight second before he retorted in his own way. "But if I do not train this way, I will lose my edge, and that is unacceptable. If I can-" "But you're going to kill yourself like that, Hey!" Colonnello responded.

Fong was insulted. "Oh? Do you think I cannot handle it? I assure you, you're concern for me is misplaced." Fong told him. "What do you need all that power for, Hey!" "But there is always room for improvement." "True, but if you keep it up then you'll end yourself. Don't make me stop you, Hey!" Colonnello told him. Fong had no response for such concern, he could never remeber seeing it given to him. Fong was an orphan who was taken in under a brutal and strict master who accepted nothing but the best. Concern was new to him.

"Why?" He finally asked. "You're body is oxygen starved. At this level our brains our starting to lose a few functions. Look at your left index finger, Fong." Lal told him. Fong looked, and to his astonishment found he had somehow broken his finger. "You're brain is starting to cut off oxygen to some locations of your body in order to keep itself and other organs alive. Without the oxygen, your body cells started to die. You felt weak and decided to train, killing yourself more. You broke your finger, didn't notice because of some oxygen starvation, and kept training. Your body takes time to adjust to so little oxygen, in order to run on less. Don't expect to not encounter any problems just because you are a famous fighter, Fong." Verde the scientist told him.

Fong was astonished. He had known the risks, but thought himself to strong to be affected like this. As a result he had kept up his devastatingly dangerous and debilitating training styles. "We don't want to see you dead, Hey!"

He snapped his finger back into position and stopped training immediately. "How did you know about that?" Fong asked the five in front of him, Colonnello, Verde, Luce, Lal, and Skull. "It's just science and the way bodies adapt to certain planetary extremes." Verde told him disinterested. "We've been through the same in our training." Lal told him, speaking for hem and Colonnello. "I've gone through lots of low oxygen involved stunts. Like the time I fell from space with only twenty milliliters of fuel in a jet-pack! Or the time I climbed Everest without an air canister!" Skull told him. "I was born and raised in these high hills, so I got used to slightly less oxygen than you. My family and I would go camping higher up and there was even less oxygen then." Luce told him softly.

Fong had found himself some friends.

When they reached the peak and were transformed, Fong broke a little bit. Never again would he be able to train, or fight, or anything! That was his life! Fighting and Training for more fighting! That couldn't be taken away from him! He would find that man, and force him to change himself and the others back. He would break this curse!

Then Verde told them about themselves. Fong calmed down quickly. So, he had the body of an infant forever? But he only gained more power? That was a bit unfair to other fighters, and he could never be unfair about fighting! He would find a way to break this curse. No aging or body weaknesses? He liked those benefits, but he'd give them up in a heartbeat to have his body back. He didn't like having to wear the pacifier, it was demeaning. But Verde said it gave them their life energy, so on it stayed.

Fong gained friends on that mountain, but he lost his purpose and reason to live.

He didn't like that trade.

So he left. He took up fighting again, giving opponents great handicaps to make up for his overpowering and unearned strength. He still quickly rose through the ranks until he was on top. Fong was wracked with guilt though, feeling he did not deserve his title and honors. His fans had connected him to the other more well known cursed babies, and come up with a name. Arcobaleno. The same name Verde had used because the masked man had used it. Fine then. He would accept that title. He had earned THAT one.

So, he quit fighting in tournaments. But he never let his skill or strength go. He trained several apprentices, and they went on to become powerful fighters and men. Fong loved that, seeing that his training brought good to some people. He was now more social, just what he had truly needed in his life.

Time past. An age passed. Fong was stunned to discover his students had grown old while he stayed so young. Soon everyone he knew was dead, and he was alone again. He withdrew himself.

But he kept teaching. Teaching and training. He got back into tournaments every once and a while, to confirm to his fans and the world that he was still alive. But he shut down his own academy and started training people at insanely young ages. He wanted to walk by them, so that he would never truly see them die. No, he would see them _Live._

He trained some of the greatest martial artist men in the world. He still kept his training up. But even he got lonely. He missed his true adopted family, the Arcobaleno. He only heard tales and rumors of them. He was so far away after all.

Fong had lost everything, but gained a family on that mountain. But that was enough. For he was Fong, and Fong meant Wind.

The Wind was never tied down.


	4. Chapter 4

Arcobaleno: Lives of Lies

I do not own Katekyō Hitman Reborn.

Chapter: Skull

Skull was a mysterious figure. There was no info or background knowledge about the man who would not die. All was known was that Skull was never seen without his or her purple outfit, and Skull normally wore a motorcycle helmet. But nobody cared about that. They just wanted him to do his outrageous stunts. The world enjoyed seeing him risk his life for no reason. Skull did the things he did for money, fame, and enjoyment. He was the kind of person who would never back down if called chicken, regardless of the costs. He would go to hell and back on a simple dare, as he had proven many a time.

He had no limit, and no regard for his own safety. He did it, for the sheer adrenalin rush. Skull had no regard for life or death. He just wasn't the type of man to hold back and be afraid of anything. It was this attitude, along with his special ability, Armor Muscle, which had enabled him to survive any hit or blow.

Skull was on a road trip to a new dare (Jumping the grand canyon with a Hummer) when he received a letter, telling him to meet at the base of a mountain in Italy. He would have ignored it, if the letter had not been so mysterious. How did he even obtain this letter when he and his crew were going without stopping in a Mobile home?

So Skull quickly completed his jump, stole the Hummer and drove off to the nearest airport.

When he arrived in the Italian location he me the six other people. He didn't know any of them, and assumed they were his fan or instructors in the newest stunt. And so he addressed the thin man shaped like a lightning bolt that way. "Oh hey, what do you want me to do?" Skull asked him. The thin man, completely taken aback, thought of the first thing that came to his mind. "Get me an espresso." Skull, assuming that was just how the man was, got him an Espresso.

The group of seven would never forget this. The eight would eventually be informed of it too.

When Skull finally sat down with the other six, he noticed several things. Some of the men were giving off a dangerous aura. The woman who offered them cookies was preggers or had recently given birth. The man in the red clothes was Fong, the world's best martial artist. The man in the lab coat was Verde, the Einstein among geniuses. None of them but the preggo woman knew why they were here. So he observed from behind his helmet quickly.

The woman was kind, pregnant, and seemed to calm the group down. She was the only one who knew what was going, he guessed. Skull always trusted his guesses. Her hat suggested she was a shaman woman.

The cloaked figure was mysterious, and kind of scary in a way. He had a certain feel to him that set Skull on edge. And if Skull looked carefully, his entire form seemed to flicker. Skull trusted his skills of observation.

Fong was quite and seemed reserved. Skull assumed he was shy and just didn't have anything to really say.

The man in the suit and Fedora, with the weird sideburns was toting a pistol. The man must've thought it was well hidden, and it was, but Skull always saw more than he let on. If the man tried to shoot him, Skull would activate his armored body and rip him in two.

The serious woman, moved with a grace like Fong had, suggesting she had trained in fighting styles. She was dressed like a flight attendant for some reason.

Verde was sitting and writing without stop, and hadn't even responded when offered cookies. Skull would have kicked him under the table if he didn't know Verde was carrying a Stun gun. He had seen that model before, it reached up to ten thousand volts. And then it had looked like it had been tinkered with by Verde himself. Skull knew about that model from the time he was shot with five of these at the same time.

So Skull waited for whatever they needed to do. He climbed the mountain with them. It wasn't such a difficult trip until it became oxygen light. He had much time to think. Thoughts like, 'why am I here', and 'why are these people the way they are?' He was observatent to little details. He noticed that Fong wasn't letting his body adapt to the low oxygen. He noticed Luce and the Fedora seemed unaffected. He noticed the cloaked figure had to re-adjust his illusions more and more as they didn't work right in the low oxygen zone.

When the thin man in the black suit drew his pistol at nothing Skull assumed his paranoid nature and lack of oxygen had gotten to him. When a blond man walked out from behind the rocks Skull still didn't have the slightest why the man with the fedora had thought it necessary to draw a gun on him. So what if the man had been following them? He wasn't hurting anyone!

Skull quickly got to know Colonnello. They rubbed each other the wrong way though, so they kept themselves apart. Skull himself knew the correct way to let his body adjust, so the low oxygen was no problem. Among the few rest they had he talked to some of the members, but they didn't really get to know each other until Fong hurt himself as a result of his training.

When they reached the top and they were transformed into babies Skull didn't panic, even if he wanted to. His career was over, right? He quickly checked that his Armored Muscle ability worked. It did, and seemed amplified in fact. Verde quickly rattled off statistics about their new forms.

Skull did not like the idea of immortality. All things needed to die eventually. Being stuck as a baby sucked horribly, but so long as he had his power than he could continue to be a stuntman, he'd just have to be more careful. Resistant to sicknesses? Sweet. Amplified senses and bodies? Epic. Stuck as baby? Oh HELL NO.

When the cloaked man revealed to be Viper by the Masked man revealed that he planned to break this curse, despite Verde's warning that it was impossible, Skull wanted to do the same. But who was he kidding. He didn't have the slightest clue how to do that. It was better to wait for them to finish. After all, he had all the time in the world now.

Things were odd for a long time as he continued to perform his stunts. Due to his new body it was all very strange. The gigantic Octopus he had gained? Okay, that was pretty weird too. His stunts ceased to thrill him.

When he was approached by the Calcassa family, he jumped at the possibilities and let his mind wander about all those mafia movies he had watched. That was the sort of thrill he lived for! Never mind that it was one of the darkest times for the mafia world, he wanted some thrills, whether he died or not!

Skull was addicted to adrenaline, and even he knew it'd kill him. He wouldn't have it any other way.


	5. Chapter 5

Arcobaleno: Lives of Lies

I do not own Katekyō Hitman Reborn.

Chapter: Lal Mirch

Lal Mirch was a soldier, from a long line of male soldiers. Her father loved her, but neither of her parents wanted her to join the military. But she tried to join anyway, signing her name up for the far off future, when she became eighteen. But her dad had used his influence to bar her entry. So she trained herself. She could use any gun she saw. It was a gift. It also irritated her family to no end. Lal Mirch quickly became an ace shot at the local gun range. At the age of eight she could fire off twenty shotgun rounds in nine seconds. By the age of nine she could hold a sniper rifle and not be hurt by recoil. At the age of ten she had fired a rocket launcher. She trained her body in various martial arts. She was determined to become a warrior. It was in her blood.

Of all the guns she handled, the preferred the shotgun. So she eventually saved up her allowance and money from jobs to buy a combat shotgun. Her father was outraged, and took the gun and hid it. She locked herself in her room for a week. When she became sixteen she took her guns, provisions, some bullets, a few clothes, and she hit the road. She would become a warrior or die.

She arrived in Italy and stopped crime and mafia activities by herself as a vigilante for a while. She also worked as a clothes maker, perfect cover for her base of operations. But she was eventually found by Mafioso's. She killed those who came after her, feeling no regret. She had seen them selling drugs, invading homes, pillaging, and raping on a few occasions. She killed them and 'coerced' information out of her captive. She killed him too before attacking their base of operations.

None survived. But she was hurt badly. The town took care of their sixteen year old savior. The Italian military forces heard of her amazing story and attempted to recruit her. She accepted after bargaining terms. She quickly rose through the ranks, until eventually her superiors gave her the news. She had been given to COMSUBIN, the elite Italian forces. She quickly rose through their ranks too. By the time she was twenty she was the best field agent they ever had.

The COMSUBIN and some Italian forces eventually took on a large and old mafia family. The family had a history of drug running, hostage situations, and general nastiness. She and her squad forced entry into the group's inner sanctum. They reached a choke point inside a building, and they were grenade bombed. With part of her face burned and her weapon destroyed, things looked grim for her and her small squad.

Then Vongola Primo and his guardians arrived. She watched with stunned awe as the seven men tore into the family COMSUBIN were attacking. They fought with flames, something she herself was only beginning to train in. At one point an enemy mafia man with the grenade launched pointed his gun at the Rain guardian and his strange four swords. Lal Mirch took the gun from him, killed him with a combat dagger in her boot, and shot the grenade launcher into the boss Mafioso's face. The man was obliterated.

The enemy family surrendered. Her mission accomplished she told her team to get out and get reinforcements. Lal Mirch herself, armed with a grenade launched and considerable willpower faced down Vongola Primo and his six guardians. She must have made a sight, with part of her face gone, a grenade launcher in her right hand, a broken shotgun on her back, and a knife in her left hand. She was confident she was about to die, but she would go down blaze of glory style. Her father had told her that was how she would die if he let her join the military. He wouldn't let her because she was the type to throw herself into an impossible situation.

Primo did not waver, but he did not attack. "Why are you here?" Lal asked Primo and his guardians between pants. "These men need to die. They were a horrible dishonorable family that sold drugs and committed crimes so horrible the mafia world deemed them necessary to die. Stand aside and let us kill them." Primo told her. "These men are under my guard. You will not touch them. They will rot in prison for the rest of their lives." Lal told Primo.

"Heh Boss let's just kill her and them and go." G voiced, pointing his weapon at her. She did not falter at his attitude or his words. She threw her knife at him. It pierced his Bow, rendering him unarmed. G looked surprised, and Asari laughed before saying, "Hey, she did save me from getting shot with that grenade launcher she's got. I think we should let the nice police woman do her job."

Primo used his hyper intuition on her. He saw her past, her resolve, and her power. "These men will escape from your prison. What will you do then?" Primo asked Lal. "I will be there when they do, and I will hunt them down myself. I will not let them live a second time either." Primo saw her resolve. He nodded to her, before turning. "She has this. We will leave. She will not let them escape." He and the guardians left. But as he stood in the door Primo stopped. "You have great promise, and you will demolish anybody that is evil. We could use someone like you in the Vongola family." Primo told her. It was the first time she had seen his face break into a smile.

She was stunned for a few seconds. "Like hell I'll join a mafia family! I'm going to research you! If I don't like what I find, I'll kill you all!" Lal shouted at him. He smiled his knowing smile and left. Lal's reinforcements arrived. They took the group of mafia scum into custody. When they escaped, Lal was there with her shotgun, her burned face, and her fierce spirit. None of the Mafioso escaped. Many were killed. The rest committed suicide, so afraid of her and her unbreakable resolution and spirit.

She also kept her promise to Primo. She dug deep into the new families history and activities. In the end she turned up they were killing off lots of competition. They didn't traffic anything illegal or immoral. They worked together and had quickly forged alliances with powerful groups. They seemed to almost be… a positive influence of the town they were in, employing a number of people. They defended their town, the people of their town, and kept bad things out. Lal decided. They could live. For now.

A year passed. Lal celebrated her twenty first birthday alone and like it was any other day; By training and yelling at her laid back squad. She was a slave driver, needing perfection in their and her own skills. She demanded it. For she was still haunted by her father's words and attitude. Soon a promotion arrived. The COMSUBIN wanted her train some recruits and other squads to be like her and her squad.

She was insulted they wanted her to teach. She suspected it was because she had sustained an injury on her last raid. She suspected it was because they thought she was no longer good enough to lead her squad. They really just wanted her to see if she could whip some recruits into shape, but she took it as a personal insult.

She flat out refused, yelled at her superiors that they were all great windbags, and she would teach when hell froze over. Truthfully, her superiors were all old windbags, but they still were legends in their own right. They had been there and done that. They listened to her yelling, judged her character. When she left (almost taking the double doors off their hinges) they did not take offense at her actions, they reveled in it. For they knew her type. She was the best of the best, and no less.

So the old warriors plotted a little to get her to teach. They finally just came up with the simplest solution. No more raids until you taught at least one group. Lal, faced with such an obstacle and no way around it, threatened to quit. To her, such an act was akin to suicide. To them, the seasoned old warriors, it was an act of childish rebellion. They had been faced with such situations themselves. They did not alter their demand. Lal would not quit. She was not a quitter.

She taught a group. Secretly she loved it. They were fresh, malleable, and easily whipped into a condition she liked. They weren't like her squad of veterans, who did everything their way in the end, paying little head to her orders. She demanded another group after she had taught her class. She was mildly puzzled at first why the old COMSUBIN generals laughed so hard after her request. Then she was insulted, and yelled at them some more. She was met with more laughter. She stormed out, and whipped her new recruits into shape some more. After she was done taking her anger out on the poor recruits (Who would grow to be just as good as her squad, taking her extreme training to heart and soul) she went back to her own squad and began her own personal training again.

The next day she found a large official list of all the new recruit groups the generals wanted her to train. She was a natural teacher, doing it as instinctively as she fought. Lal demanded after she had at least one session of training with all the groups on the list that she would get to pick a new squad, and that afterwards they would promote her to be their equal, so she could do whatever she wanted. The generals laughed until they cried, handed her the highest rank they could bestow, and demanded she do things her own way.

She trained the recruits, and she went on raids at her own pace, quickly eliminating crime in a large portion of Italy. The generals loved her. The recruits feared her. She loved her job.

It was then she discovered him. Colonnello. He was in the last batch of recruits on the list, the one that held the least promise. He was a gem hidden in the gravel. She whipped the group into shape. But she saw he had potential no other recruit had ever shown. She demanded him. She constructed her own squad out of old squad mates, the best recruits, and Colonnello. It was the best team COMSUBIN had ever seen.

She needed him. Colonnello completed her. It was as simple as that. She took him with her everywhere she went. When he first appeared, the generals took one look at him and started betting pools. 'How many kids.' 'When they would get married.' 'Who the kids would look like and act like.'

The leader of COMSUBIN himself declared Colonnello to be whipped. Colonnello had no response, because if he protested Lal would take it as insubordination, and beat his ass in front of the fifteen old generals. That would prove it.

She put her team through intense training. They knew every gun ever made inside and out. They trained in martial arts. They even requested Fong to teach them some stances. He obliged and trained them in several styles. Fong was the best Sensei Lal ever had, and her team quickly became even better. When she was satisfied with their results they went back to Italy. She had a feeling she would see Fong again. She didn't know how true that was.

She received the letter.

She asked for some time off. She didn't know why she even bothered with it, but those few words on the letter tugged at her soul. She needed to do this like she had needed to board that greyhound away from her home armed with a shotgun and some supplies. (She had been the weirdest thing that ever happened on that bus.)

So she requested some time off, to which the old generals were utterly shocked about, but granted without a fuss. She had never missed a day of training or work in their memory. She came in when she had contracted a harsh strain of Influenza. She came in after a surgery to remove bullets from her legs, when the doctors told her to stay home and rest. (Her squad at the time had forced her to rest, even when they had to bind her in a strait jacket. She never forgave them for their compassion.)

She needed to do it.

So off she went.

At the base of the mountain she met six of the most powerful people in the world.

Hitman, as he was known, the most dangerous man in the modern world. He was the ultimate assassin. He had never failed a hit. He survived 97 hours of water boarding without uttering a sound. He had been forced to go without food or water for two weeks without succumbing. He had survived the Rack. That was just the start of the list. No doubt he had his famous pistol with him.

Skull, a legendary un-killable man. His body and muscles were hard a diamond. His latest feat was jumping the Grand Canyon in a HUMMER.

Verde, the insane scientist. He was recognized as the smartest man on the planet, and COMSUBIN suspected he had over a hundred alibis. Lal saw he carried a tampered with Stun Gun.

Luce, the shaman woman of the eastern world. She could cure diseases with herbs and old recipes.

Fong, her teacher for a time, and the strongest martial artist in the modern world. He could make Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris cry for mommy. He could probably make her cry for mommy too…

And a cloaked man in the corner, who was casting so many illusions to hide himself that she assumed he must be the most wanted man in the world. She had no prove that he was the feared Viper, the only name the most powerful illusionist in the world, no, the history of the world, so she did not engage him immediately.

She immediately knew from the way they moved around her that they all recognized and knew who she was. She was honored and intimidated. But there was to be no fighting. Luce's calming aura made sure they didn't do anything. They were to climb to the top of the mountain together.

Simple enough, until you factored in that: Skull was lazy, the Cloaked schemer was impatient, Reborn did things at his pace only, Fong was always trying to train, Luce was recently recovering from giving birth, Verde was slightly unfit, and she herself did not do anything but yell and train most of the time. She couldn't yell at a woman who still had a swollen belly from giving birth. She probably should not yell at Hitman to slow down. She could not threaten Skull or the Cloaked Figure. She respected Fong too much to advise him to wait for later to preform his devastatingly tough training.

When Hitman pulled a pistol at the cliff side she knew shit had just hit the fan. She fully accepted she was not up to Hitman's level, which only drove her to become better. If he thought someone was there, only an illusionist of Vipers caliber could hope to evade him. But if the person could evade her detection then they were strong.

She was very surprised when Colonnello walked out. What the hell? She hadn't told him she was even going anywhere! Did he receive the letter too? No, there was no way for him to receive a letter that she was unaware about as the squad captain. So he must've followed her. Impressive that she had not noticed. No wait… she would've noticed, it was just she was so used to his presence she did not detect him and his usual tells.

"Relax, I know him." Lal told them under her breath. She walked over to Colonnello and hit him in the head _hard._ "What do you think you're doing here!" She yelled at him. "I'm here to take your place! Whatever the letter was about must be dangerous, and I won't let you be in danger on your time off, Hey!" Colonnello told her. "How did you know about my time off!" "The generals told me when I asked why the base was so quite, Hey!" She hit him harder.

In the end she agreed to let him follow her. Why? She completed her, and even she knew it. She could take a glance right behind her and money would be changing hands about their future lives together, she was sure. (It was true, Skull and Luce traded some cash around. Verde threw in some cash and speculations. The cloaked man threw in a great deal of cash, actually. Fong was too polite, but he definitely sided with the cloaked man.)

So they walked up the mountain side. "That man…. In the cloak… Do you think he's…Hey?" Colonnello asked her, pointing at him. "I'd give up my shotgun if that wasn't Viper." Lal told Colonnello. Serious indeed. Suddenly there was a shifting motion behind them. The two had lagged at the back of the group, so no one noticed. "It's not nice to talk about people behind their backs, you know." The cloaked man whispered. She looked ahead. He was still walking along with the group ahead. "How?" "The correct question is when. The answer? Since you entered into my line of sight. I advise you two not to try anything. I'm scarier than even Hitman over there." Viper whispered. Nobody but Colonnello and Lal could possibly know.

And then Viper was gone, as suddenly as he had appeared. "Hey… Let's not bug him, alright?" Colonnello whispered in her ear. "Agreed." She whispered back.

Viper turned and looked straight at them. To the others, his posture clearly wanted them to pick up the pace. But he send them a mental message. _"Glad you see it my way."_

They reached the top of the Mountain. Colonnello grabbed the pacifier meant for her from the masked man. When they went through the process she endured the pain, but it didn't seem as powerful as it afflicted the others. If it was enough to make Hitman clench his teeth in pain but she didn't even make a noise she doubted she was in as much pain as them.

When it was over? She stood aside from the others. Outside their ring. She had obtained a pacifier, but it was filled with black swirls, like ink suspended in space. Colonnello received the blue pacifier she was supposed to get. He would never know just how grateful she was that he had taken her spot. But he saw her guilt. He comforted her, like this didn't even faze him. "How are you so calm?" She asked him. "I've been through worse?" "Really?" "I survived your training, didn't I?" She hit him again.

Verde listed the benefits. Eternal youth. Verrrryyyy youthful. Infant sized, really. The others had gained pets. She didn't. They had unbreakable curses, but after an examination Verde had declared she could evade the curse by not utilizing her pacifier. It seemed it held a limited amount of Rain flame.

She was tearing up a little. Colonnello faced her. "Are you crying, Hey?" "Don't be an idiot, who would cry in this situation!" "Sorry, I wanted to save you in a cooler fashion." Colonello told her. Stupid Colonnello. What would he do now that he was an infant? One could not be COMSUBIN as an infant! "You're planning is always naïve!" She told him. It was true. He was once going to barge into enemy territory and just wave his gun around and tell them to take him to their leader.

"You're right, but you're curse is incomplete. So long as you don't use the power, it'll go away gradually." Lal sighed a tiny bit. Yes, she was a failure of an Arcobaleno. Even the masked man had implied it. "With this in mind you can live peacefully as a girl." Was Lal going to need to bitch slap a Colonnello soon? Yes, she was. "Don't joke around! What do you intend on doing now!"

She asked him the question, in her distress of not being one of them.

He had a simple, very Colonnello like answer. "Hmm. For the time being, Live."

She vowed on that day she would use her power in secret once a day a tiny bit. She would never leave him behind. Never.

"Will you come with me?" "Idiot, who would go with you!" On the rock wall above them the other six sat and watched. Their thoughts were all the same. 'Typical married argument.'

They all climbed down the mountain. The eight bonded a little. They were her family now, even if she was not really one of them. She couldn't go back to COMSUBIN like this, even if Colonnello was going to try and get his position back. He could lead her squad.

She had a certain Vongola Primo to take up on an offer.


	6. Chapter 6

Arcobaleno: Lives of Lies

I do not own Katekyō Hitman Reborn.

Chapter: Colonnello

(Nine chapters, Nine days. Sweet.)

Before Colonnello was a COMSUBIN soldier he was an older brother. He took care of his two younger brothers and little sister. Their father was always busy working to support the family. Colonnello kept the family sane and together. At the cost of his dreams, life, and education. It was worth it though, if they grew up to be something.

Colonnello was truthfully rather depressed. Eventually when his siblings grew able to care for themselves he had no purpose, but he also had no skills. The second eldest sibling, his little brother Eric signed up for military. Colonnello had no purpose but to be a guardian for his three precious siblings. So he joined up with Eric. Colonnello discovered an outlet in their training. Shortly afterward their father was killed.

He had been a target for a mob hit. Colonnello and Eric were the only survivors. The house was burned down. Colonnello became suicidal and sad. Eric was a beacon of light for Colonnello. Colonnello himself, having no purpose or direction to use his rage on, furthered his military training.

One day he asked his little brother how he could keep smiling. His little brother didn't have answer. They got their first taste of combat. Eric was appalled. Colonnello was unaffected. Eric wanted to quit, but Colonnello wanted him to stay. Eric stayed for his broken older brother. It was his turn to protect his family.

The two grew. They fought together. Colonnello loves fighting. Eric was becoming sick of the fighting and the war on mafia, but he hid his pain behind a smile for the only person left he loved, his older brother. Colonnello didn't notice. When they fought Colonnello became Eric's older brother again, always keeping him out of trouble and watching his back.

One day, on the field Colonnello got hurt. It was his fault, but Eric blamed himself. They fought each other for the first time in their lives. Eric told his brother he wanted him to quit fighting. Colonnello didn't understand. He was doing this for him, for their siblings, for vengeance. Why couldn't he understand!

Eric told him they were dead, and nothing could bring them back. Colonnello ceased talking to his brother. Eric didn't leave though. Colonnello forged ahead, no longer held back by the obligation of family. Eric didn't have his wingman.

You can image what happened next.

Eric was killed on the field against the enemy. In the last minute he went down blaze of glory style himself, running headlong into the enemy with a grenade and a dying will. Colonnello blamed himself. Colonnello lost all regard for human life, and destroyed all mafia enemies he encountered on the field. He was broken inside. He took up his brother's habits. Things like smiling and saying nothing was wrong. Making up foolish plans. Saying 'Hey!', 'Maggot', or 'Damn-it' at the end of sentences. Sniping instead of using rapid fire guns. Colonnello refused to let his brother be forgotten. He resolved that Eric would live on in him.

Colonnello was put through numerous psych tests after the higher ups noticed his behaviors. Colonnello was forced to talk to the COMSUBIN psychiatrists. When he was eventually declared unfit mentally to fight Colonnello was put on standby at a remote base. He trained his mind and read books until he could fool the shrinks. He gave them the answers they wanted. He lied with his brother's smile on his face. No one could tell.

Shortly after he was put back into raid teams he met Lal. He didn't know why she chose him. He didn't care as long as he could kill for his family.

Lal saved him. She pointed out that he was going to get himself killed, and the better option was to live another day to kill more tomorrow than to go down fighting. Colonnello took her words to heart.

He ended up in Lals squad. He rather liked always being with her. She seemed to complete him. She had endless bravery and a fiery will. He had cold resolve and a death wish. They fit like matching gloves.

It was some point in their training together that Colonnello finally woke up and became himself again. He kept one or two of his brother's mannerisms, refusing to drop things that felt so familiar, but he was eventually more himself in the end. Eric would've run into battle with no plan or style. Colonnello would run in without a plan, but a very specific dash of style. Colonnello.

He came to know Lal like the back of his hand, or the inside of his anti-tank rifle. He trained with her in martial arts, weapons, and the way of Flames. He discovered he had Rain, meaning tranquility. So did Lal. Neither of them were very tranquil. But they liked it this way.

There are two types of Rain. The tranquility kind which breaks illusions and stops movement, and the hurricane force rain, which washes everything in its path away. Nothing survives. It is twice as relentless as Storm flame, and about as acidic. Yet the flames of hurricane are blue.

Lal got a letter. He didn't know what was in it, but judging by the way she acted she was rattled on some level. He didn't read the letter. He followed her tracks after Colonnello realized she had gone. He would not let her slip out of his life.

He followed her up the trail, keeping great care to hide himself from her and her companions. If he had known who she was with he wouldn't have bothered.

When the Hitman pulled a gun on Colonnello, he was surprised to see seven of the most powerful people on the planet on that skimpy goat trail.

Hitman, the infallible assassin. The rap sheet on him was literally big enough to cover a wall in the COMSUBIN target room.

Verde, a genius with no morals or respect, and about ninety known aliases.

Skull, the immortal Stunt man. He had once jumped through helicopter blades and come out unscathed.

Luce, shaman woman, soothsayer, and leader of the Giglio Nero family.

Viper, (at least who Colonnello suspected was Viper) the legendary illusionist who could trick even Daemon Spade.

Fong the world's best martial artist and ruler of the martial art tournaments.

Colonnello had no doubt he was not on their level. They were all gods in their own rights. Legendary figures to strive to be like, not to outshine. Lal was not in danger. He would fall back to fight another day tactics. He introduced himself and told Lal in no certain terms was she going to endanger herself. He then briefly noticed money changing hands between the six figures behind Lal. Whatever.

So he travelled with them to the top. When the masked man reached out to give Lal her pacifier he was there to steal it from his grip.

When he was released from the pain he discovered he was flying. He was elated and told the other Arcobaleno their powers were awesome. Reborn pointed out he had a sea hawk holding him up by his hair. That was funny to them, and he faked being angry. If it made Lal laugh it was worth it.

He encouraged her to try and release herself from her curse. Colonnello saw the look in her eye. It only came around when she yelled no man left behind and rushed back to drag him out of danger by the roots of his hair. That look that said, I'm not leaving you behind, so deal. Lal had seen his potential when she had recruited him, but she had also seen his pain.

On the way down the mountain Colonnello made friends with Fong, Hitman (who had opened up slightly), Skull, Luce, and to an extent Viper, and Verde. He adopted them as his siblings then, and swore he would save them if they ever got into danger, no matter what happened. He was sad when Lal told his she was going to try a change of pace, but he accepted it. It's not like he was never going to see her again.

Colonnello gave her the same advice Eric had given him when he had asked how he could smile.

They would _Live._


	7. Chapter 7

Arcobaleno: Lives of Lies

I do not own Katekyō Hitman Reborn.

Chapter: Verde

Verde was smart. Beyond smart. Ludicrous intelligence. He made Darwin and DaVinci look like grade schoolers. But Madness and Genius walk hand and hand. Nobody knew this quite like geniuses themselves. Verde had two idols. The first was Einstein. The second was Machiavelli. He had heard of them and understood who they were by the age of three.

He followed some of their steps, trying to follow his idols like other children. Einstein didn't talk until he was eight? Verde didn't speak a word until he was ten. Machiavelli knew Latin? Verde spoke Latin, much to the frustration of his parents.

It took Verde the first ten years to learn about Atoms, Gravity, Space Time, Anatomy, Mechanics, Biology, Genetics, Mathematics, Languages, Geometry, Physical Science, Social Science, Psychology, Formal Sciences, Chemistry, Earth and Life science, Computer Science, Law, Judicial Law, Forensics, Theoretical science, Hacking, Statistics, and so much more.

There was no limit to what Verde knew. He could dissect the most complicated machines in a glance. He knew exactly how many grams of pressure were needed to break a spine. He knew martial arts through reading about them. To him, he didn't need to actually train his body, because he KNEW how to move simply by observation and illustration. All he needed was the information.

By the time Verde was fifteen he held five hundred patents to his name. He had set up an information system that assembled all of the governments information together in one. He had access to EVERYTHING every government under the world had access to. He sent himself a few million dollars and resolved to pay of his debt double fold. He left a very obvious trail through all of the governments files and computers. He didn't care that they quickly knew who he was. It only took five hours of work at a laptop for Verde to pay off his theft to the government triple fold.

The governments were not happy. Verde didn't care. They couldn't touch him, because he was protected by their own laws. He didn't expect them to break their own laws. It was breaking a rule in the game!

For to Verde, life was but a game. And he had been handed the omnipotent power the game could bestow. Intelligence. He was simply to smart for the governments to catch though. He always had eight escape plans. So he gave the government the slip. Verde sent his Parents on an all expense paid trip to a Fuji resorts for the rest of their lives. He changed his files about him so that no connection between them and him could ever be found. He didn't want to the only people he had to protect to get involved with his game with the governments of the world. (Most of them were after him.)

He loved his game. It allowed his him to be ruthless. He could go anywhere and do anything due to his knowledge. He had no limits the rules he set for himself were simple. If you get caught and can't get away, you lose. If you die, you've lost. If you let your parents or anybody who will have a reason to be protected by you get hurt or caught, you lose. You must try not to involve the innocent.

Verde had more fun in those days than he had in his entire life.

It ended when he turned twenty. He had gotten bored of his game because the governments stopped trying to catch him. So he settled down in a lab he built in Italy and built. Verde built everything and anything. He built a time machine. He built a teleporter. He built a cloning device. Verde could build anything. So he built it all. You name it; he had a device for it. However, there was only one of him, and since he knew at a glance if his machine worked or not he did not test many of his devices.

There was no purpose to some of his devices. The teleporter took the fun out of travelling, so he destroyed it, and stored away the design where no one would ever find it. The next teleporter he built was outrageously massive and took more power than was reasonable to work. That design also floated in the sky. It was more fun than his personal handheld teleporter. He still never used it.

His time machine was fun, but utterly useless. Verde knew better than to fiddle with the past. He did not want to see the future, for he already knew what it would look like. Pointless. He built a bazooka that sent the person it was used on into the future, smuggled it into the tech vault of the famous Bovino family and let them take credit for something way beyond their time. He enjoyed his little pranks that could potentially change the world. He liked to listen to his whims.

Why was he like this? He understood the fine line between sanity and madness. He was confident the line was not there, in other words. Einstein acted like a little kid to prevent his minds from darkening into something horrible. It was simple really. Act innocent, and the minds will change to reflect it. Verde was like that for a long time, but he got bored of it. As it turned out, insanity was much more fun.

Power had gotten to him, he was fully aware of it. But it was okay, because he had earned and made all this power for himself. No one else had helped. He built by himself. He was thus in the right, and not merely spoiled. Even when he bought himself a highly illegal rare species of Caiman that was not supposed to be available.

At some point he started getting bored again. So he set out to do the impossible. Learn everything in the world. He was fully aware it was impossible, for new things always happen to change it, but he was bored and needed direction. His mission was direction. So regardless of how it would turn out, he set his sights back on studying.

He grew to be twenty five. He began to worry slightly about his life span. So he built a machine that would transfer his consciousness into another body. He didn't like that one, so he built a machine that would reconstruct him should he type in a certain code. He was positive that was a good trick for immortality, but he could do better. He built a philosophers stone. Meh, there was probably a better way than relying on a potion every month. He slowed down the growth of his cells so that he would be immortal. He didn't like that one either.

He quit immortality after achieving several different routes to it. It took the fun out of the game. He would let himself age. If he ever got close to dying he'd just clone himself and leave his legacy to his mini-me. Wasn't like the cloned Verde would be any different than him, he had fixed that flaw shortly after it was built. Cryogenics were weird and he didn't like the possibilities of errors.

Verde turned down immortality. He recognized everything needed to die. He figured it was just one of the rules to the game. He would die. Didn't mean he would lose the game if he did it right though.

So Verde kept at it. Inventing, mass producing, ruling parts of the world behind the scenes. He was having fun. But he bored of it, just like he bored of everything before. Nothing could hold his interest for long. A short while back madness had gotten boring too, in fact. So he went Sane. Very Sane. Then that got boring. Right now he was insane instead of mad. Only he knew the slight differences.

Verde always was too smart for his own good.

And so Verde was bored out of his mind with nothing to do. He had read everything he wanted to. Tasted the greatest foods. Mastered every science and revolutionized it all. Done everything once. It was about that time he lost his innocent façade. He turned to combat. He saved it for last. He wasn't sure what he would do when this lost his interest, but he had quit planning for anything else.

He also received a letter. It just showed up in his European lab one day. The cameras had recorded a figure wreathed in electrical static drop the letter off. Verde was intrigued. He had not been intrigued since he was eighteen and his cousin had introduced him to video games.

That felt like so long ago.

The letter was simple, but totally in traceable. The letter itself held a mystical energy that prevented it from harm. He was sure nobody but him could possibly have noticed the strange energy. He had put it under a laser and tried to pick the atoms that made the page apart but nothing he built could scratch it. During the process he realized it was rather odd for a grown man to be trying to destroy a letter that clearly was indestructible, so he just decided to read it.

He travelled to Italy. He arrived at a small lodge at the bottom of a mountain. Inside the lodge were six other individuals. He recognized three of the people present, but then he used the technology built into his body and clothes to figure out more.

The thin man in the black suit and a fedora was Hitman. Not much information was in his file, only a long list of victims. There was a list of tactics that revealed the only way Hitman had left to kill someone was through balloon related deaths. Verde snickered. Hitman had no background info at all in other words. The common internet search revealed him to be the second most wanted man in Italy, eightieth most wanted man on a global scale, and the best assassin the world had ever seen. Verde was intrigued. But, he'd find out more later.

The man (A quick scan informed him the person in front of him was male) in purple was Skull, the best stunt man in the world. Verde frowned when he read his file and list of accomplishments. How had he done it? By all means these things revealed he should be dead. How was he cheating the game? Verde attached a small bug to Skull. It would tell him that Skull had the ability to use Cloud flames to pack his body with powerful cells with amazing defensive quality. Verde smiled, having figured out the mystery before him. Skull sweat dropped and backed away from the mad scientist. Little details were useless. Like that Skull was born on August 8th.

Verde observed Fong for a while. He was a genius in his own right, but not in the way Verde was. Fong had no life but his martial arts. Verde studied his body secretly. Fong was defiantly rewriting some biological limits of the human body, but none were so outstanding to make Verde delve deeper. Verde did not have eyes for Fong once he found out as much as he could.

Verde studied Lal Mirch for a short time. She was a definition perfect soldier. Her training meant she could wield anything. Survived a grenade blast in close proximity with little harm. She was a teacher of eighteen squads, and her squad was the strongest in COMSUBIN records. Riveting back story. He would read it over coffee sometime.

Viper. At least, he suspected the figure in the coat was the infamous Viper. He had once spent a whole week on the individual known as Viper. There was so many strange accomplishments. Yet there really wasn't any data. An interesting paradox that drew Verde in. He would figure out those secrets soon though. He launched a nano technology robot onto Viper. It didn't respond. He tried again. Same result. Viper made no move, so Verde assumed the figure had not noticed. Reborn didn't even have a clue. Verde withdrew his attack. No one was any wiser for it.

Luce was another enigma. She could heal seruis alements with herbs and roots. She was a shaman woman, who could predict the future. Her clan was always very protective of the Trin-ni-set. Verde could fathom a guess she knew what was going on here. Verde himself had some speculations about what was going on here too. Rainbow. It wasn't very well documented, but it had happened before. Arcobaleno. That was the prominent theory in Verdes mind.

He went outside and laughed for a long while. It probably didn't make him look any better in the other's eyes, but Verde was never the type to care about what others thought of him. He knew humans rejected instinctually what they didn't understand. He had reverse engineered his own mind to be attracted to what he didn't understand. When he did, it became boring and Verde needed a new toy.

Their mission was to travel up the mountain. Verde dropped sensors everywhere he went up the mountain. The closer to the top he got, the stronger the unidentifiable energy level got. He got more exited. He was ecstatic by the time they were half way up. Several weak pieces of tech on his body needed repair after he had accidently shocked them with his powerful lightening abilities.

It was about that time he observed two things. A small rock fell off the path behind them and rolled down the mountain side. Verde studied everything about it and decided there was no way it could have fallen without an external force. Second, his sensors picked up a human figure following them up the mountain side. There was no sense of stealth to the man (Who he identified though his tech to be known as Colonnello) so that meant he didn't know who he was following.

Verde used his technology to research Colonnello. He found that he was an excellent soldier, but he was a bit unstable mentally. He was most likely following Lal because the two were smitten for each other. (The report from the general he had discovered seemed to stress this fact for some reason.) He deemed Colonnello to be uninteresting. He ignored the group when Hitman pulled his CZ75 1ST pistol on the man. He did not find their exchange all that interesting, so he was the one who got the group moving again.

He continued to research the seven people around him on his travels up the mountainside.

When he reached the top Verde was surprised at the sight of the masked man. This was the figure who had managed to steak into his European base in the dead of night? He did not seem all that special to Verde. He ran a scanner over the Masked man. The scan came up to reveal there was nothing there. A hologram? No, that would still present certain energy traces. The figure in front of the eight was a phantom.

When they transformed Verde was surprised by the pain. Verde had not felt pain since he was nineteen, when he used nano technology to turn off his pain receptors. He knew what was dangerous and what wasn't. There was no reason for pain, when his mind thought faster than his pain travelled. (fun fact: Pain travels at .61 m/s)

So when he felt the pain it surprised him, since he had been without it for so long. But, he was no stranger to pain after subjecting himself to strange chemicals he had made in his lab that he could not identify. Nothing major to him. The tohers around him all showed signs of extreme stress though. 'Fascinating, I wonder what method of torture the masked man is using on us?' It was then he noticed he was shrinking. For all his intelligence the only thought that ran through Verdes head at that moment was 'WTF?'

When the process was over Verde immediately began to run scans. He rattled of facts aloud. "Heightened scenes. Faster reaction time. Slowed pulse and pain reception. A slight impairment in judgment that results from shrinking in size. Easily correctable. Increased blood pressure. Increased tolerance of extreme conditions. Increased vision levels. Increased Blood- oxygen levels. Increased resistances to poison and sicknesses. Scratch that, unaffected by sicknesses. Extremely fast cell regeneration rate. Immortality by permanent cell regrowth and maintenance. Substance decrease in height. Resistance to hallucinogenic drugs and mist flames." (Verde runs a hand over his chin in absent thought, then looks surprised) "loss of hair follicles."

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we are currently stuck as two year olds. I have identified no mental damage has occurred from the process. I suggest you do not attempt to break this curse, as it appears to be impossible." Verde announced to the seven people who had been listening to his thoughts.

Verde left them to heir thoughts. They asked questions to him every once in a while and answered them without really giving them a second of attention. He was elsewhere right now.

Verde was thinking. He was thinking philosophically, which was something he hadn't had to do in a long time. He had long ago come up with personal answers to the questions that cannot be decided on. But this transformation meant he was going to need to adjust his answers.

He had finally remembered where he had seen this particular energy before. 'The energy currently coming from his pacifier around his neck was a type of deep space phenomenon. He had eventually decided it was the energy used to create the big bang. It was will, in a form of energy used by the planets themselves. It radiated out of the Mare rings and the Tri-ni-set of the Giglio Nero family that Luce was the leader of. So she DID know this was going to happen? Oh well, that's not important anymore.

'What's important is what we now all are. We are peacekeepers. Not in action, but by simply existing. While we exist and live our bodies will sent out waves of energy that could be used to heal the planet under our feet. It is a type of extreme natural life energy, but not bound to a living organism. That energy resided in the pacifiers, used their Arcobaleno bodies to emit on a world wide scale, and healed the planet and kept sanity for all living creatures.'

'If the pacifiers are using our bodies to send out energy that means our entire bodies are able to send dying will flames anywhere in our bodies. I could harness this to run several things. Interesting. I was handed the most interesting toy the universe has ever come up with. The proper course would be to inform the other six who own functional pacifiers that they are now responsible for the balance of planet earth. As long as they live everything will be okay here.'

Verde looked up. Colonnello was comforting Lal. Luce was rubbing her stomach, seemingly understanding something he was not interested in right now. Lal was tearing up. Hitman was on a rock and looked lost. Fong was meditating. Skull was pacing and mumbling to himself. Viper was futilely trying to life the curse while using mist flames.

Verde made a snap decision in that moment. 'They aren't ready. If I told them that they were now solely responsible for the health of the planets it might wreck their minds. In the interest of preserving future specimens I will tell them at a later date or let them figure it out on their own. It would be healthier mentally for now. Perhaps I should manipulate a few facts? Yes, that seems like the best thing to do.' "Everyone. Do not remove your pacifiers. They are batteries that give off energy we need to survive. If you remove one it would kill you after a short period of time without it being on. Try not to remove them for any reason." Verde announced to the group. They nodded their thanks and continued their activities.

Verde observed. 'That's not a lie, but it's not the truth either. If they wear those pacifiers 24/7 then it will keep the earth in healing, so it will prevent them from dying in the long run. But also, they could not survive themselves if separated for more than a year from their pacifiers. If I make it sound like they'll die in maybe a day or so, they'll be reluctant to take them off and fight harder to protect them. Two birds with one stone. Machiavelli would be proud.'

Lal asked to be inspected. Verde gave her some scan results. "You're pacifier does not emit the same energy constantly like ours does, but the energy is there. If you were to tap into that energy it for a long period of time it would regress you back into infant stage. However, if you do not use the power you should grow at a slow rate. I estimate it would take you fifty years to grow to be twenty. However, the longer you go without using your power the quicker you would grow. If you truly went fifty years without using your power you would become eighty. If say, you avoided using your power for five years, you would become about…. Twenty three. But you would also lose all your Arcobaleno benefits."

"I encourage you to use your power a little bit every once and a while, and it will keep the power of Arcobaleno energy strong within you." Verde told Lal. She nodded. Colonnello shot Verde the nastiest look he could and Verde backed off quickly. He had never seen a dark look in those blue eyes before, and it was one of the few things that he could say honestly scared him.

It was about that time Verde turned to studying the pets everybody had but Lal. His own Caiman had somehow been teleported here by the masked man. Upon questioning nobody but Hitman and himself had possessed a pet prior. They ran off the same energy as they did, but appeared to take the energy in waves and amplify it. Ah, so that's how it was broadcasted, through their pets! It made since. The pets were able to exist as long as the Arcobaleno did.

Skulls octopus could change size easily, a trait real octopi had.

Verdes Camion was a lazy thing and did not appear to have any powers.

Colonnello's seahawk was strong enough to pick up and carry around Colonnello.

Luces squirrel was unatrually fast, but that appeared to be it.

Viper would not let him near his pet.

Hitman refused to let him dissect his Chameleon when he saw it shape shift. Touchy sun Arcobaleno.

Fong's monkey did not appear to do anything, until it got sick of Verde prodding it with his advanced scanning arm and snapped it in half. Verde was surprised, as the arm had never been broken by any specimen before, and thus he had not brought a spare. Ah well, he'd get it later.

They travelled down the mountain together. They all bonded a little, and Verde gave them a list of seventeen of his twenty bases around the world. They were welcome to show up and stay as long as they liked, although he would want to experiment with them.

Afterwards they split up. Verde had never been so happy. The universe had seen it fit to give him fascinating toys that he would never tire of playing with. The universe had seen him fit to exclude from death.

He had never been so curious of what came next.


	8. Chapter 8

Arcobaleno: Lives of Lies

I do not own Katekyō Hitman Reborn.

Chapter: Viper

Viper was the world's best illusionist. It was a fact. A fact known by none, however. It is said that the devils greatest trick was convincing the world he didn't exist. Vipers greatest accomplishment was the same. There was no story to Viper. No weaknesses. No identity behind the hood. No Gender even.

But Viper had not always been this way, as one might suspect. The being known as Viper was born into an enemy of the Estraneo family. If you recognize the name Estraneo it is probably because of their heinous crimes in the name of science. They turned everyone they could get their hands onto into experiments. But they had not always been this way, just as Viper had not always been just a figure with no background.

The Estraneo family had two major rival families in the mafia world. The Bovino family, who used technology like the Estraneo's, but in weapon form. And then there was the Serpente who specialized in fighting with psychic abilities. The Estraneo family were tech uses like the Bovino, but instead of weapons they liked using medical science to 'improve' their warriors. Conditioning could be performed on babies while they were still in the womb. One day, the day that the Estraneo family officially had gone mad, they joined up with the Calcassa. The Calcassa family was known for being honor-less, but even they probably wouldn't have agreed to what they were about to do if they had known the full story.

The boss of the Estraneo family and the boss of the Calcassa family sat down together. In that meeting the boss of the Estraneo family poisoned the boss of the Calcassa family. Calcassa suddenly was much more open to demands. A plot was devised by the Estraneos to wipe out the Serpente family. The Calcassa were told they would also benefit the spoils. The Calcassa boss gave the all clear and full support, all the while being poisoned with a slow acting toxin from the Estraneo.

As the groups started preparations the leaders of the Estraneo family left some purposely made flaws in their battle plans. The leaders among the Calcassa family were bribed, blackmailed, or eliminated secretly and then replaced quietly by Estraneo operatives. On the day of the attack the Calcassa suffered massive losses. Serpente was utterly destroyed. Estraneo got off with less damage than even they anticipated. The boss of the Calcassa was given the antidote, but told if he ever tried to give away info, the Estraneo family could easily kill him by remotely rendering the antidote ineffective, and destroying them through technological power.

What were the spoils of the Estraneo family? Several hundred captives, some relics that could be sold at high prices, Serpente secrets, and of course, the regular benefits f having one less competitor. So the Estraneo family used their captives in their experiments. (Mind you, this is still the time of Primo. They haven't gotten anywhere near danger time yet.) And so they tried genetic engineering on one particularly powerful group of psychics.

They took the best of their captives, selectively 'bred' them, and kept at it until Subject V was born. Subject V was the strongest illusionist the world had ever known. But she didn't start with illusions. The first power observed in Viper at the tender age of twenty months was telekinesis while hooked to a channeling devise and given a Serpente relic. She played with floating blocks and utilized her power so naturally and smoothly that it broke all previous records. The Estraneo family decided they'd stop the breeding program there until Subject V was old enough to reproduce, if they allowed her to.

So Subject V, of Viper, as her mother called her, was put through many, many tests. She didn't understand, and they didn't do anything to risk their shining star. She continued to be raised and observed by the scientists. The next power she developed was thought reading. At the age of five. At least, that's when she first showed signs of it. The scientists determined there probably hadn't been a way to observe this power working beforehand. After mind reading came projecting thoughts. Subject V was a quite one, preferring to keep to herself when she was allowed to associate for her child mind's sanity. They cut her vocal cords in two. She didn't even notice, having used them very little anyways.

Silence appeared to be Subject V's greatest friend. When she needed to talk and discovered she could not, she used her mind. The scientists tested this power and discovered it had limits. Oh well, those limits would be over come as she got older and gained experience. When Subject V developed the ability to float it wasn't a big surprise for the scientists. Lots of the advanced members of the Serpente family could do it. When she developed thoughtography the scientists threw a party.

When Subject V turned twelve she was given large sums of information regards everything she was curious about. The Estraneo family had given all their subjects educations, but carefully changed the data and facts and education so that it didn't seem like there was anything outside the base. In other words, they taught the Subjects about humans, human anatomy, languages, and certain sciences.

Subject V, when given the outside stimulant quickly took to reading. Books weren't like the textbooks that did nothing but ramble on forever. As one of the few female young subjects Subject V was not like the males who weren't curios and preferred physical activities and training. Viper had an imagination. She read books. She imagined in her head what she read. Scientists gawked at her incredible illusions from the observation rooms.

They put her through illusion tests. She was the youngest to display these abilities, and the other subjects were quickly pushed into their own illusionary educations.

When the scientist who was to test Viper arrived and told her to put him under a convincing illusion, she told him he already was. He tried explaining it again. She remained resolute that he was already under. There was no illusion in sight. The scientist shrugged, decided discipline was in order, and took a swing with his thin stick. He didn't hit her. The stick passed right through. Viper lectured him about how humans see what they expect to see. The fifty scientists watching their greatest achievement gawked. Such power was impossible! On the first try! Even their machines, specifically designed to spot illusionist all confirmed no one was in the room.

They sweeped the room. They dropped a net from the ceiling. No one was there. It took a bright revolutionary young mind to ask if she was even in there anymore. He was quickly silenced by his elder peers, and sent to roam the halls. He found Subject V roaming the halls. He took her hand and brought her to the other scientists. They were at first very surprised by her wit of leaving the room when the tester walked in. She told them she was still in the room. Viper cast another quick illusion and morphed part of the net to look like had actually caught her, and she was laying under it bored while the men ran around the room looking for her.

The scientists in the observation room guided the men in the room to where V was. They could not touch her. It dawned on the scientists that they might have a problem here. One smacked V and yelled at her. Suddenly that Subject V was gone. The real Viper hid by the door (Which was open, but seen as closed) and watched as the scientists had done everything When the one had hit her she dropped that clone illusion. She knew what pain was, and did not enjoy it. It hurt, and Viper did not like pain. She got mad.

And on that day, Viper the phantom was unleashed onto that base. She lived her life as less than a fleeting shadow. Whatever she ate in the mess hall could never be revealed as gone until someone tried to grab it. She could obtain entertainment in her illusions. She read whatever she could get her hands on. When a scientist got on her nerves or tried just a little to hard to catch her she would punish them like the Greek god Hypnos.

She made scientists (who were fond of walking and reading at the same time) walk into walls or get hopelessly lost. She sent guards sent after her on merry goose chases. When electronics were used on her all she had to do was make sure to charm them with her illusions. She was very thorough with her power too, making sure to even coat the walls with illusions.

It was a very simple trick really. Humans see what they expect to see, and they have to notice a little something off before they really started looking. It was in a psychology book she had been given. So, if she laid down illusions that were just matching second skins then she could ensnare you in her power. For you see, once you fall for an illusionists illusion, they gain total control. If she put a white wall where there was a white wall, you believed it to be real. And you were ensnared it.

For all her imagination and power, Viper was still woefully lacking in knowledge. The scientists were very careful with what they were leaving around when it was not in contact with them. Their only advantage over their daily annoyance was that she didn't have enough intelligence.

One day Viper stopped and just listened to what they had to say as they talked to each other. She was getting more mature, not that she realized it. So on the day she first sat down among the scientists and just listened to them talk, she heard many new things. It made her so confused, yet she was so curious! So she kidnapped a scientist. She probably didn't know it was all that bad even, but she used her illusions to lead an inattentive scientist into a spacious broom closet she called home.

The closet was layered with so much illusionary magic that even if you touched it, it would affect your senses in such a way that you couldn't gain entry even if you looked at the blueprints. It was Vipers finest piece at the time, an illusion so powerful your brain could not comprehend it to be fake. If you strained yourself your brain would collapse under the strain of trying to gain access due to miss-information.

So Viper asked questions of the scientist and tied him down with illusionary ropes. Another thing she had read was a book of saying. One of them was 'If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it's probably a duck.' Even though she didn't know what a duck was she understood the principle. If it looked like a rope, felt like a rope, and didn't yield when you strained on it, it's probably a legitimate rope right? Wrong in this case.

So Viper took a scientist captive. She recognized him; he was the one who had suggested she wasn't in the room all those years ago. She drilled him for information. She wanted knowledge. He refused adamantly. The voices in the shadows, Vipers imaginary friends, didn't like this. They told her what she could do to him from what she knew, her brain giving input in a way she could understand.

To a good illusionist, you're imaginary friends don't really have to be imaginary. Especially when others can see them.

So she tortured him mentally. She had no idea, she just wanted answers and he was making her mad by not giving them when she knew he knew them! Over time and repeated attempts she decided to try new ways. She set him up in a very persuasive mind illusion. If the brain thinks you're moving, it feels realistic enough. She made it horribly, considering what she knew though, it was a masterpiece. The illusion showed the scientist being found and released.

Then it was him interacting with her illusionary people in his head. He, so happy to be found, dismissed their odd quirks and strange ways. They asked him questions about thing. At first they were very regular ones to keep the illusion running. 'What happened, what was it like, are you hurt,' and so on. Viper sat by and read his thoughts. She gleaned massive amounts of information from his mind. In the end, when she dropped the illusion it didn't work. She looked at it from his point of view. His brain was totally convinced this was reality.

Viper knew something was wrong then. He seemed… broken, like some of the things she had stolen that didn't work anymore, like the blender thing that made the loud noises. So she gave him back. 'Maybe the men in white coats could fix him?' Twelve year old Viper thought. She dragged him back out, dropped him off, and lifted the invisibility illusion. She observed the panic of the other men in white as they suddenly were able to see the man. He was taken away on a weird stretcher. She looked into his mind. Her illusion was still running, except she was not focusing on it now. It seemed like his brain had taken over her job. One of the men in white announced the man was in a coma. Viper wondered what a coma was.

Viper continued to haunt the base, except she discovered her newest power around the time she turned sixteen. She could erase memories too! So she continued kidnapping (but returning before they broke, complete with a load of missing memories) and brain searching. By the time Viper was eighteen she was smart as a regular human is by that age.

Escape was easy, and she could of done it when she was six if she had wanted to. Instead she continued to skulk into people's mind. Now that she knew about life and death, she was wondering about how she even got here, in this lab. She knew a nice woman had once called her Viper, so that's what she had been calling herself for years.

But the scientists had called her Subject V. She hunted down her file. She read everything about how she had got here. She read the other files. She discovered that everyone but her from the Serpente family was dead except her. They had little use for them, and those that showed promise of her level all died. She was alone.

Viper killed then all. Not a single scientist was left. It was easy, simple, _fun._ She was a phantom, and they had been living under her inexhaustible mist powered illusions for TWELVE YEARS. She killed them all, burnt the base and all their things, data, and gadgets to the ground. She then hid remains she didn't have the power to destroy with the most powerful illusions she could muster. A slag pile several miles wide turned into a large bumpy hill. No-one was any wiser. She got off scot free, not that she was concerned about life with her powers.

Viper had been nude for years. She easily constructed some illusionary clothes until she stole some real ones out of a store. She got a backpack, filled it with food, supplies, goodies, and most importantly of all, money. Viper, after searching through the minds of all those greedy scum bag scientists had discovered that most of them were driven by money. She understood what is was, what it could do for you. Having never had luxuries before in her life, Viper wanted some now. She was overwhelmed by the outside world, despite prepping herself before leaving by stealing so many memories.

She could speak twenty one languages. She had a massive supply of 'fake ids' and 'disguises.' She went to a opened an account, sent all the money from the dead scientists accounts into her account, and then withdrew that. When that didn't work right and the cops were called on her she just stole the amount of money she had stolen out of the vault. And so she walked off with the life saving of a few score people.

She got involved in everything she could. The only thing she didn't bother with was sports. She bought people who would tell her things. She continued to learn. She attended a high school for a few years disguised as a fake person she had made up on the spot. She was quite and didn't attract attention to herself, so everything worked out right. She investigated the mafia world, and killed as many people of families that had helped in the destruction of the Serpente family. There were quite a few people besides the major two players, Calcassa and Estraneo. She killed many high profile people.

She had no regrets. They should have seen something like this coming anyways. "One does not pay god and make super soldiers, and expect it to turn out well," as spoken from the mind of the last man she had killed.

Viper didn't have any working vocal cords, but her illusions matcher the mental things she said so it appeared she was talking. If she wanted to, she could send messages that also did not get interference from space, like she made her illusionary talking seem like. So she could talk regularly to people, or talk directly into their head and make them hear things she said. Best of all, she had a form of mind control because she could plant ideas and the targets brain would think they were the targets own.

She ruined many people, and gathered money for her luxuries and life. She had become a major threat to the mafia world that had created her. They were busy searching for the mysterious figure known as Viper while she was living her life as a high rolling billionaire. (The mob called her viper because she had dropped a note on one of the people she had forced into a coma with her name on it that read, 'You killed someone dear to me. I have killed everyone dear to you. And now you will live without a mind. – Signed Viper.'

Several years went by, and Viper had turned twenty three. She received a letter. It named her as Viper, and the greatest assassin the world had ever known. She was truly scared for one of the few times in her life. It told her to go to the base of a mountain in Italy. She became paranoid during the trip. She could not understand how she had received a letter like that. There was no way to associate Viper with her. She was untraceable! Every piece of tech she'd ever met stopped working around her when she cast even the least powerful of her illusions!

So she travelled south east into Italy and met six scary people at the base of the mountains. In that log cabin she recognized everybody, having taken great care to research people in all sorts of the mob and elsewhere.

Hitman, a man in all black that scared Viper to her core. He could see through all but her strongest illusions, so she made her clone sitting at the table extra carefully.

Verde, smartest human on the planet. He reminded her too much of the men in white coats. It was only her curiosity of his green hair that kept her from killing him. She had never seen green hair before, and neither had any of the scientists she mind broke.

Skull, a creepy guy in purple who she couldn't see the eyes of. He was wearing nothing but purple, and his helmet scared her. She made her illusionary clone not reflect her fear of course.

Lal Mirch. She was a danger and had to be very hoodwinked. Viper would be very careful to keep her under control.

Luce. This was the only person here not scary to Viper. Luce reminder Viper of the woman who had raised her in the base, a powerful illusionist by the name of Cobra. She was a healer woman of great skill. Luce had taken to staring at her illusionary copy.

Fon, the man who had mastered every fighting style ever known and was the ultimate close range fighter.

Viper was scared by all of them but Luce. In heart, no matter how well Viper hid herself and projected her illusions, she was always afraid she was going to be caught again. She got the feeling she would not escape a second time. She would die before being put back under the scalpels and medicines. But a scared snake strikes back, she always told herself to be a little braver.

Luce had quit staring at Vipers illusionary body at the head of the pack up the mountain by their fifth stop. Luce was smiling softly to herself, and Viper was curious why she was so happy. She softly approached. Luce turned to look directly at her, and she kept smiling. Viper ran to the very back of the pack, but her illusionary double acted like nothing was wrong. She had always made it so brave, despite it being nothing like her.

Viper notice when Colonnello showed up because he almost walked into her from behind. Viper had leapt three feet in the air and cast illusions so powerful they even fooled her. Colonnello didn't notice a thing and continued following the group. She debated about killing him in some horrible fashion. Viper knew him, he was in one of COMSUBIN's files. He was a student for Lal Mirch, and he held great promise. But then Hitman pulled a gun and pointed it directly at Vipers head. To the other four it looked like Hitman was pointing a gun at Colonnello. To Colonnello the gun looked slightly off, like Hitman was aiming for his ear, but he dismissed it as a trick or something. He knew Hitman would not miss him.

But the Gun was pointed a Viper. Hitman knew it, and she knew it. She quickly reached out and wiped a few memories from his mind about her and illusionists. The gun moved back to pointing at Colonnello so subtly it appeared to have not moved at all. Illusions helped.

When Lal and Colonnello discussed her figure further up the path she couldn't help but attack them with another illusion. The double team of illusions was funny to watch as they suddenly stiffed their spines and marched like a knife was in their backs.

When they reached the top and Viper was put through pain like no other she knew what the pain was _doing._ It was healing them, but also weakening them. On the day Viper shrank she gained the ability to talk again, but she lost her powers of telekinesis, un-assisted levitation, memory editing, and mind reading. She gained a battery of mist flames, but she had never run out before in her life, so that wasn't a problem. A frog sat on her head. She liked the frog, but it was were her powers had been moved to. She wanted those four powers BACK, regardless of the consequences.

She used her vocal cords for the fifth time in her life and the first in her life as an Arcobaleno. "I intend to break this curse. I encourage you to do the same." Verde announced that it was impossible. She tried to attack him with a low level illusion, but it didn't seem to even register to him. He rattled off a list of facts and benefits. On the way down the mountain Viper cast a powerful illusion over Colonnello. It had a simple purpose, it was just to test her powers over the other Arcobaleno. When Colonnello tripped over nothing she knew she still had it. Lal beat her student for his clumsiness. Wow. Two birds with one stone. Luce looked at her real body disapprovingly. Viper, now used to this, made a face at her.

The group split up. Viper didn't want to see any of them again for a _long _ time. The only Arcobaleno she kept contact with was Verde, as he was the only scientist she had ever encountered she hadn't mind broken. She also felt slightly warm in her center when she looked at him, but that was unrelated.

Viper was a child that was never supposed to grow up the way she did. She was the ultimate Illusionist ever known, and she could drive people to madness simply if she did not let them out of her illusions every once in a while.

Viper was greedy for life. And she was the being behind the impossible to catch mist.


	9. Chapter 9

Arcobaleno: Lives of Lies

I do not own Katekyō Hitman Reborn.

Chapter: Luce

(I'm so sorry, this was written and uploaded ages ago, but I forgot to put it on the story)

Luce was the head of the Giglio Nero family. The main base of the Giglio Nero family had a massive mountain in their backyard. It was so high it stretched into the sky. The surrounding town was old. Rumored to be as old as the mountain. The town's residents were also all very old. It must've been a requirement to live in the town that you must be at least two hundred years old.

Luce grew up with many, many doting grandpararents. She didn't know her own mother, and her father seemed to not exist.

She grew up with the Family of Nero, but she was always visiting the elderly townspeople. She made her guardians help elderly women cross streets, carry groceries, and other activities the old force upon the young for their entertainment.

Luce was twelve when she discovered she had a gift for healing. She had nursed a sick bird back to health. It hadn't taken the slightest bit of medicine or even much time. Her very presence seemed to cure it. She cured a Fawn she had found in the forest. Soon she healed humans from her family.

One day she told one of her grandmothers about her healing powers. Her grandmother spread around town to her other grandmothers about Luce's healing ability. The old residential ladies of the town told her to go visit the shaman woman up the mountain, just as her mother had. She did this, and discovered an old woman with wrinkles so numerous you couldn't see her eyes.

She studied under her for many years. Until she was twenty, in fact. Luce grew accustomed to the higher atmospheres of the mountain. She became excellent with herbs and remedies. Luce was able to access her sky intuition, as everybody with a sky flame is capable of having excellent clarity.

Luce started healing people on a broader scale. Soon people came to see her, even from far away areas. She could heal anything. Some things took time and were tricky, others required a few herbal teas and some clean air. Luce was a master healer.

She did not ask much money. Just enough to help her obtain herbs that could not be found around her location. As she grew older the only people who aged were the people of the Giglio Nero family. The old citizens of the town, and her master shaman on the mountain didn't get a day older.

The mystery irked Luce. She was very inquisitive. One day, on her regular visit to her master, she pressed a little too far. Her master became angry, but told her. Luce will forever remember that conversation. "You silly girl! You don't know anything!" 'How do you expect me to know anything if I am not told?" "Mind your own business!" "But I want to know!" "The truth is sometimes strange!" "I'm the leader of the Giglio Nero family, this won't surprise me."

Luce's mentor, Grendala, made a deep hacking sound. At first Luce thought she was dying, but then she realized Grendala was laughing. "Fine. I'll tell you, young child." "I'm not a child." "Oh, but you are… you are. You know the function of the Giglio Nero families Mare rings? The ability to exist in all the dimensions at once? Well, this power helps keep the world healthy. It's a type of cosmic energy, able to heal only. This mountain, I'm on, is the home of the Tri Ni Set. There is a cave, hidden away near the top, that has seven stone pacifiers, encased in rock. Then there is a hidden tomb, which contains seven rings much like the Mare rings your family holds."

"The seven other rings work in a way much like your Mare rings. But instead of existing in all the multi-verses at once and never running out of power, these seven rings transcend time to give power of heritage to the bearer. All that hold those rings will gain the power of their strongest bearer, for all time. This set emits a powerful healing ability for the planet, much like our mare rings." "I don't understand, what does this have to do with the-"

"I'm getting there! Children today! The seven pacifiers up the mountain, encased in stone, are a special last resort. They will stabilize the planet it times of great need. It is said holding the pacifiers will grant eternal youth as a small infant. A terrible curse, for the ones who save the planet. And such those that bear the pacifiers are known as Arcobaleno. The pacifiers have been used before, but each time history has forgotten them. They gaps between use are long enough for the world to forget, although if there were some holders in modern day the story would defiantly be remembered."

"So there are the two parts of the Tri-Ni-Set, up the mountain. The third part of the Tri-Ni-Set lays at the bottom of the mountain, as it always should. This creates a powerful healing energy around here. A long time ago, when I was still young in-fact, the seven Mare rings were moved to a different area. The town wasn't the same. The air was slightly less clear, the sky was slightly dirtier, and the whole world seemed slightly off. When those rings returned because of your mother, the power of the three sets of healing devices started leaking down the mountain again. All those who were alive here when the rings left and were alive for the rings return have been cursed themselves, with life spilling off the Tri-Ni-Set. Because of that, we will not die until one of the three sets are moved. And trust me dear, that day is fast approaching." Grendala told Luce.

Luce did not sleep that night. Several more years passed, and she became pregnant. She was happy to be a mother. Her old friend Vongola Primo stopped stopped by once or twice, he was practically her uncle. She conferred with her guardians. She knew what was happening. She had the letter arrive soon after.

Arcobaleno. The Pacifiers. Luce knew what was to happen. She set aside a log cabin on the other side of the mountain from the town and her family for the arrivals. They arrived overnight. Skull, the man who lived to die. Viper, the girl with a life of horror. Hitman, with the glorious and dreadful path of war. Verde, always running and never caught. Lal Mirch, the warrior who would put Aires to shame. Fong, the one who was wise and old, yet young and powerful.

Luce knew. She knew that Verde and Skull knew she knew what was to come. She let them worry. She acted like herself. Nice, sweet, motherly. She tried to get close to them, even though it was an impossible task. When it was time for Luce to deliver she had her guardians pick her up and take her back to town in secret. She only left the others alone for a few days, and they had been living in that cabin with each other in silence for about a month. A month of silence and slight hostility. She delivered her baby. She named the baby girl with her eyes Aria. She was the most beautiful thing Luce had ever seen.

Then Luce was ready to fulfill her duty to the world. She traveled up the mountain with them. She used her power to learn about their pasts.

Luce could see Viper as she really was. A scared, small and shy girl; Unlike Viper's mysterious false illusionary image. She tried to be the girl's mother as best she could. She was hard to get close to, and never trusted anybody. To trust was to die for poor Viper.

She saw Hitman just needed someone who needed to lift a few burdens off his chest. She knew he would never tell her of his life, but Luce's presence was soothing and calming.

Verde needed to spend less time thinking, or he'd well and truly go insane. The climb up the mountain was good for him, even if the exercise made his a bit crabby. (Though oddly enough Verde wasn't out of shape.)

Skull just needed someone to be nice to him, and then he would defend that person until he died. Shame the others couldn't see his loyalty and need for a few friends.

Fong just needed company. He had lived alone for so long he experienced culture shock every time he saw another human.

Lal needed a calming influence, Luce was the ideal candidate. She was also female, older, friendly, and patient.

Luce needed to keep them connected together, even if she was not there. Like a family. She needed to make these reluctant people want to stick together in times of crisis. The job of the Arcobaleno was to heal the planet, simply by existing healthily. She needed to keep them sane. If she did enough, they could keep each other sane too.

Luce noticed Colonnello shortly before Hitman pulled a gun on him. How did she find out? The mountain told her. It whispered its message to her, groaning in its bones and creaking of its back. The mountain knew, he was needed. And he was. Whereas Luce was suspicious for the others by being on their mission, Colonnello was an outsider who was not connected. They didn't have to be suspicious of him. And so he served as the ice breaker, making them all become slightly social.

After that Luce made real progress with the others.

When the time came, the man in the Iron hat recognized that Luce knew what was to happen next. _"The sky Arcobaleno do not have the infinite lives of the other six. You must play your piece quickly and then vanish. If they were to know you had died, it would crush them." _He whispered in her ear. She was shocked up until the point the others started listening to Verde inform them of what Luce already knew. Nobody had told her about this part of the Arcobaleno. 'How short? Will I…. Will I be able to see my daughter grow up?'

Luce fled to the house as soon as they parted at the base of the mountain. She arrived at the house, informed her Guardians of what had happened, and handed over her sky Mare ring. She had the Pacifier now. She quickly left on a journey to finish business that had to be done before her death.

One of her stops was the Cave on the edge of town, to her mentor. There was no one there. There was no sign of where Grendala had gone to, and all the equipment and things were in the right place. But where was her mentor? She quickly visited the town. All the residences were gone too.

She knew what had happened. She had removed the pacifiers from the area.

She had killed them all. There was a page of paper she found in the middle of town, held down on the rim of the well by a rock. It read, 'Live, Luce. It's not your fault. We knew this day was coming. We all love you, you are our little angel." It was signed by all the villagers of the town.

Luce wept for her family. Afterwards she went to see Primo, and advise him in actions for the sake of the world. She quickly conferred with many bosses of certain families all around the world, but convinced them to stay quite about her visits.

Tired, and feeling worn out, Luce returned to her home, where she would live for several years. In that time all but Viper showed up at her house by the mountain. Viper arrived five days before Luce's death. She stayed by her side without moving for those fife days. This was no illusion, but the real deal. The other Arcobaleno showed up on the third day, and Viper hid herself, but stayed.

They left for the last day. No one was there the day Luce supposedly died. They knew she was doing it, what they could not. Escaping the Arcobaleno curse.

The sky pacifier was given to Aria, along with a list of instructions made by her mother in song form. The sky would continue on.

Luce was hidden away, sleeping like the dead. But she's not.

To the Arcobaleno, She is M.I.A.


End file.
